User Reviews

Poured from a bottle into a pint glass. It pours a clear amber color. A 1 inch light tan head forms and slowly reduces to a nice lacing. Definite carbonation and no sediment.

The aroma is weak. There is a distinct malting presence with a somewhat caramel and burnt/hoppy component and not much else.

The taste is that roasted caramel malt with just a slight touch of earthy hops. A bit of banana and bread are also present.

The mouthfeel is medium bodied. Carbonation is a bit high. A minimal dryness is there at the end. This has a smooth and reasonably clean compoonent.

Overall, I have had this beer on-top, from growlers and from the bottle. It is a great session beer and I although the components in and of themselves are not incredible, the beer as a whole is very good.

Its Fanatsy Draft and the Oktober Fest beers are in full force. The capital brewery oktoberfest is is a good beer!!!! The appearance is a rich copper/amber. Very thin head...if any that is not lacing. The smell has some sweet maltiness to it, the tast definitely has a sweetness. The mouthfeel is very smoot and easily could be sessioned. Certainly worth a try for all those Okto fans.

Pours a light, meringue-like fluffy head of about 3cm. No noticeable lacing, head retention is poor, reducing to a very fine ring around the glass rather quickly. Body is very orange amber in color, transparent, not much visible carbonation.

Scent is primarily malt and perhaps some lager yeast characteristics. Not particularly complex, even for a Marzen.

Mouthfeel is crisp, with fair amounts of carbonation, very satisfying for the style. Finish is dry, a bit sticky, but nothing obscene. Enjoyed the mouthfeel most in this beer.

This is a fairly average Oktoberfest, a bit disappointing considering the brewery it's coming from. With a number of other German breweries to choose from, this one doesn't really stand out over any and distinguish itself.

T -- Sweet breadiness up front that folds into a good grainy-biscuit character. A mild spicy bitterness in the aftertaste that balances well. Malt luscious and very easy-drinking.

M -- Mouthfeel is very soft and smooth with a light-medium body.

O -- A very clean and flavorful, well-constructed lager from the Midwest King of Lagers. As with most Ami-Oktos, I just wish there was more of a big toasted bread character as a fresh Bavarian Okto will have. What makes this a winner is that brewmaster Kirby doesn't try to overcompensate with a big roasted character as do many U.S. micros.

Previous review:
2009 bottling, just in at the local -- surprised I've never reviewed this in the past. My favorite all time micro -- but I can be objective when it comes to beer... especially my fave style.

A -- Bright, clear, amber-orange color with a thick, off-white head that settles slowly.

S -- I can smell "beeriness" at arm's length from the pour; aroma is pretty thin and mild spicy hops with a bready backbone come out with a swirl.

T -- Mildly sweet, nutty maltiness up front with some bready maltiness in the middle and a dry, spicy hop finish. Toasty breadiness in the aftertaste. Great balance all around. A little edit here -- there's some vague diacetyl in the background as the beer warms. Not distracting, but unexpected.

M -- Mouthfeel is soft and smooth with a light medium body.

D -- Finally! A very nice Okto this year. It seems like this could be the first American / German style crossover. There's some nice nuttiness, as in an Ami, with some good breadiness, as in a German -- not much of that rich maltiness from German Amber Märzens, but there's a great malt character that makes up for any loss.

Pours a clear copper, with 1 ½ fingers of bright-white frothy head. The retention here sticks around with more of a thin layer of fizzy foam that leaves back some very light looking creamy lacing. This quickly slides down the sides of the glass. The aroma is a bit musty smelling, with a combo of raw earthy spice and what I can only describe as lager yeast character. Some softer and sticky feeling malts rounds out the back.

The taste is hop forward up front with an earthy and green bitterness. Malts and some softer citrus flavor sweeten the profile up some but hops quickly kick back in, giving this a gritty and spicy finish. The mouthfeel is medium bodied, with a crispness to it that bites the tongue and then spreads out across the palate into a more silky and creamy feel.

Bitter and harsh feeling at times with too much of yeasty presence as well, this O-Fest really left me disappointed. Especially considering the brewery that made it. Now I did like the body on this, as it at least kept things crisp and smooth but the profiles here just needed some cleaning up. Not sure if I just got an off bottle or what. I'd be willing to give this another go sometime down the road.

12oz bottle into standard pint glass. best by date: 12.15.10 - cutting it close with this one, but it per se brewer, it should still be good.
A: Pours a hazy golden orange body, very classic body appearance, with a nice thin white layer of white head on the top, holds for a short time. Carbonation is very lively and lacing is left in a very minimal quantities.
S: Very bland rendition of the classic Marzen aroma. A bit of a bready, barley notes.
T/M: The front is a semi-medium body that has a dry biscuit tone to it. The mouthfeel is a cream feel, but still falls short and is a bit thin and watery on the finish.
D: This was a nice one to try among the many Marzens this season, but nothing that I would get in larger quantities than a single brew.

Color is bright peach with a slight bit of copper. Not entirely transparent, though no visible haze particles. Initial head is a single finger and dies down pretty quickly into a bit of foam on top. Very mild lacing around the sides. Nose is some light, toasted malt that reminds me of a light amber ale. Some biscuit malt as well as some very mild earthy hops.

Taste is some light biscuit malt and a very mild amount of caramel and toffee. Pretty plain. There are some light earthy and floral characteristics in the background. Light creamy character. The feel is a bit light with moderate carbonation. This is a nice and simple beer without any flaws, though I wouldn't go out of my way to try it again.

Thanks to florida9 for this one. I poured from a bottle to sa perfect pint glass, clear copper pour with a sticky 2 inch white head. Lots of bready malt on the nose. The flavor is bready, and sweet with a lingering bitterness. Full in body and well carbonated. A typical marzen, very enjoyable.

T: lots of bread-like sweetness up front, quickly followed by the apples (over-ripe and caramel), and plenty of orchard fruit funkiness, the finish is pleasantly crisp, with just a hint of herbal hop at the end.

With all of the marzens that are out this time of year it's a great opportunity to really compare different specimens of the same style see who comes out on top. I was introduced to this brewery at Brewfest this summer and was glad to see another good regional brewery come to town.

This bier is a medium copper color and is crystal clear. It has very little carbonation and the head vanishes quickly. The aroma and taste are nicely malted, sweet, and uncomplicated. They have a great flavor indicative to the style without a bunch of other notes thrown, just straight yummy goodness. Very smooth with the right amount of flavor lingering. A MUST repeat.

A: Orange brown clear hue with a nice think head poured from a bottle to a pint glass.

S: Sweet caramel malts, not much sense of hops here.

T: Toasty malt flavor, waiting for a kick that never happens.

M: Very mild carbination almost so little you think the beer is flat. Silky mouthfeel.

D: This beer is easy to drink but I'm wondering if I got a leaky bottle because it seems extremely low in carbonation and the slick mouthfeel is almost as if it's going flat. I like the beer and it's drinkable, just not sure this is what it's supposed to be but I'm willing to try it again.

pours a clear copper color with a quick dissipating head a beige collar and lacing ..smell is malts grain spices and hops a little caramel and some roasted flavors ..taste is much the same its malts both sweet and roasted with some hops some spice in there...mouth feel is lighter then most OF but it had flavor..not the best OF but it held its own it was drinkable but alas forgettable also with lots of OF to choose from ..try it though

capital oktoberfest. 2010 is printed lightly on the neck of the bottle.

a 3.5 light apricot amber, one finger nearly white head collapses to a cap. the bubbles look to be about medium size, fizzy at first but the smaller ones cluster firmly to form the cap. about halfway through the cap is gone and there is essentially no lace.

s 3.75-4 fresh bright malt (both pale and caramel) and some grassy hops. kind of reminds me of gordon biersch o'fest, which i liked, but without the unmasked alc.

t 3.5-3.75 as the nose suggested, there isn't much toastiness in this one. instead the counterbalance to the malt is provided by bittering noble hops. i wish they could have managed some authentic toasted bread flavor, but this is still a pretty enjoyable beer. boy, though, the hop bitterness does linger a bit more than i'd like in an oktoberfest. and the flavor seems to have a little unrestrained alcohol going on.

m 3.5 about medium-light body and vigorous carbonation. could use more residual malt presence.

d 3.5 had the hacker o'fest earlier today, and i think i will probably ultimately prefer that one to capital's offering. yet is this one worth trying? absolutely, particularly if you want a hoppy take on the style.